mountrushmore

Advances in climbing rope technology continues to make rock climbing easier and safer. I’m sure Jan and Herb Conn would have loved to tie into a modern dynamic climbing rope rather then the 60 foot piece of manila climbing rope they had. Poor quality climbing ropes were a main reason that early adventures climbed with the motto “the leader must not fall.” Imagine sport climbing without leader …

Hiking Black Elk Peak (aka Harney Peak) Custer State Park likes to claim Black Elk Peak, but it really is in the Black Elk Wilderness and managed by the Black Hills National Forest. The most popular trail head starts near Sylvan Lake in Custer State Park and is often still being called Harney Peak trailhead since the 2016 name change is still fresh in many peoples minds. …

Jan and Herb Conn put up over 200 first ascents here in the Black Hills, named countless geologic formations, and mapped the first 60+ miles of Jewel Cave. They are pioneers and hero’s. Check out the pics of an old article by Herb Conn from the June 1953 issue of Appalachia a premier outdoor publication back in the day.

Needles Area Climbing History South Dakota The Needles of South Dakota are what makes Black Hills Climbing famous. The routes near Sylan Lake in Custer State Park and other areas such as the Cathedral Spires, the Ten Pins, and the Needles Eye along Needles Highway, might be called the worlds best granite face climbing. The views of the surrounding Black Hills are one of the best things …

The Durrance Route is a classic no matter if you are climbing Devils Tower for the first time or the 10th time. First put up by Jack Durrance and Harrison Butterworth in 1938, this route is one of the 50 classic climbs. The climbing is unique in that there are a lot of wide cracks and full body movements in some wild positions. Taking this route to …

Many of you know that Ice Skating in high on my list of fun things to do here in the Black Hills of South Dakota during the winter months. I am not talking about the vanilla style of skating on the likes of some indoor ice rink in Rapid City. I love skating on wild ice. The skating I like to do with my friends takes place …

We have had many interesting and awesome guest and I try not to spray about them, but it has been a few years now, and I’ve talked about it, but never blogged about it until now. But I’m going to go out on a limb and say that Sylvan Rocks guide Tony Schwatz had the pleasure of guiding the oldest free climber ever to the top of …

Over 100 years ago Frank and Albert Michaud first crawled into a hole that was blowing out a wild wind. Recently Jewel Cave National Park is celebrated its 200th mile of surveyed passage. The last few years have been exciting as explorers have found exciting new leads and large passage that has really made the miles add up. There is still cave to be explored and surveyed …

How was Devils Tower formed? What is the Geology of Devils Tower? When you are driving across north eastern Wyoming and Devils Tower pops into view it is hard not to be struck by awe. Most people who see it are drawn closer and can’t help but want to climb it. Several American Indian tribes have legends about the formation of Devils Tower and you can …

During the warm days of summer, I think that the Sylvan Lake area is the best place to stay in the Black Hills if you are coming here on vacation. The original Sylvan Lake Lodge was built on the banks of Sylvan Lake in Custer State Park. The trail we hike on when heading toward the climbing area around the lake was originally a carriage road that lead …